The power of touch is an unexplainable phenomenon. With the slightest contact, you can be soothed, aroused, reassured, angered or alerted. You can be made aware of the presence of a stranger or comforted by the arrival of a loved one. One finger can elicit immeasurable emotion, good or bad. So is it any wonder that practitioners throughout the country are employing it to heal?

Healing touch therapy, although largely publicly unknown, is a growing trend in U.S. hospitals, spas, private facilities and treatment centers.  It is being used to reduce stress, calm anxiety, decrease pain, strengthen the immune system, enhance recovery, aid treatment for neck and back problems, deepen spiritual awareness and create a sense of wellbeing. Patients are swearing by it, alleging that it is better than pills as it doesn’t just take away your pain. It gives you a feeling of calm and an overall sense of goodness. Doctors don’t understand why it works or how, but they see it make a difference and so they won’t stop you from receiving it. 

Before your first session, you may anticipate something akin to a massage, but what you’ll experience is very different.  The practitioner may never touch, guiding her hands over your body, hovering but never contacting. If she does rest her fingers, she will do so lightly, pausing for no more than a moment at each landing. The idea is to balance your energy, the waves of electricity that emanate around you and interact constantly with your environment. By the end of your 30 minutes, you will have been taken to such a state of calm that sleep will be likely. Your pain, depression, anxiety or targeted ailment will have been assuaged. You will have been healed by the power of touch.

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More often than not, needles are associated with causing pain. When you are vaccinated, have your ears pierced or get a tattoo, you try to distract yourself from the metal pressing into your skin. You look away, close your eyes, bite your lip or dig your nail into another finger all in an effort to pretend that the needle does not hurt, but it does. Needles correspond with pain, and yet millions of Americans have voluntarily had them inserted into their bodies, hoping to alleviate that same pain. What were those people thinking?

They were thinking that if a procedure has lasted thousands of years, with growing popularity rather than diminishing, it must be worth trying. And, they were right. Acupuncture has been a mainstay in traditional Chinese medicine since its development. It’s based on the ideas of yin, yang and qi.  The body is a balance between yin (passivity) and yang (activity). When the balance is disrupted, qi or vital energy is blocked from the pathways or meridians in your body, leading to different levels and types of pain. Acupuncture reopens the pathways by stimulating the points along your body that connect to them. It is often used in conjunction, with other treatments, for anything from hiccups to sinusitis to paralysis.  However, recent studies show that the procedure may not need accompaniments. It may, on its own, work better than traditional Western medication.

Researchers in Germany divided 1,100 lower-back pain sufferers into three groups. Two of the groups received acupuncture, some real, some fake. The third group was treated with varying methods including injections, painkillers, massage and physical therapy. While only 27 percent of the final group reported improvement, more than 40 percent in both of the other two experienced reduced pain and disability improvement. The fact that some of the participants received sham acupuncture, where needles were not inserted as deeply or at specific acupuncture points, implies that some of the effect is mental.  However, the case for acupuncture is still strong, and you can hardly argue with history. So, why not reverse your opinion on needles? Associate them with eliminating pain rather than inducing. You might very well be better off.

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As summer segues into fall and fall into winter, the weather seems to continually flip flop. One day it is bright, sunny and temperate. The next it is steamy, humid and muggy, and the day after that brings rain, fog and chill. The incessant changes wreak havoc on all of us, causing headaches, sinus infections and general confusion. But for the 20 million Americans with asthma, it is even worse. Roller-coasting temperatures and levels of humidity are one of the most common triggers of an asthma attack and one that can rarely be avoided. Other triggers, however, are not quite as uncontrollable, as long as you know what they are.

In addition to changing temps, upper respiratory infections, strenuous exercise, certain medications, some foods and strong emotions can incite an asthma attack. Inhaled allergens, particularly pollen, animal dander and mold, are also extremely common triggers. In fact, a recent study found that removing mold from homes and improving ventilation lessened both inhaler use and asthma symptoms in all of its participants. Avoiding these particles, then, would be an excellent idea, and avoiding them in conjunction with electro-smog would be even better. The reason for that is when these particles are charged by electrical fields, from computers and other everyday electronics, they stick more readily to the lung’s and respiratory tract’s tissue; this increases the chance of infections and respiratory complications, such as an asthma attack. So, the hours you spend in front of your computer each day could be making you more reliant on your inhaler. But, how do you know for sure if that’s the trigger?

The easiest way to determine your triggers is to pay attention. Look at past history. What was present the last several times you had an attack? If you had been in contact with animals or had recently taken an anti-inflammatory, you will know that you should avoid either animal dander or that medication. f the triggers aren’t quite as clear, you can talk to your doctor about skin and blood tests. Attacks don’t always occur immediately after contact and that can cause a lot of uncertainty. Just make sure that you are informed and aware of your body’s workings. An asthma attack can easily transform from mild wheezing to a severe medical problem. Control your asthma; don’t let it control you.

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Not too long ago, smoking was the end all be all of style. Every movie star put a cigarette to their lips at least once during every film. Kids were only cool if they had a pack of Lucky Strikes in their back pocket. And advertisements proudly proclaimed the multitude of benefits smoking brought you. However, times have changed. While stars still light up on camera, it doesn’t happen nearly as often, and it’s certainly not viewed as the glamorous act it once was. Anti-smoking groups crowd high school hallways, and “he smokes” is no longer a point in a date’s favor. As for the advertisements, there haven’t been any on TV or the radio since 1971. And since 1999, all of the pro-smoking billboards have been replaced with anti-smoking ones. Why the turn around? In case you haven’t heard, smoking is bad for you.

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Have an itch?  Try not to scratch it.  Then pay close attention as the itching sensation becomes even greater, almost painful, and completely unbearable.  What if this itching sensation was not a momentary, passing discomfort?  What if the itching were chronic and lasted throughout the night, to the point that you were unable to sleep or feel relaxed for even a matter of seconds?  Chronic itch is a dilemma that many people face on a daily basis, including those with skin disorders and conditions such as eczema, as well as those patients with kidney failure or liver disease.  Oftentimes, the chronic itching can actually be caused by painkillers used in conjunction with treatments for serious conditions such as cancer. 

Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine have discovered the gene linked to itchiness, which may lead to further breakthroughs in alleviating the discomfort experienced by those plagued with chronic itch.  This gene, GRPR, is associated with both itch and pain, and more research could determine how to curb itching while not interfering with the body’s detection and response to pain.  Antihistamine drugs work for itchiness associated with insect bites and other allergies, but many other maladies are not related to histamines, and thus cannot be treated with these drugs.  New research has found that drugs that block opioid receptors in the brain can often curb itchiness in some patients with the likes of kidney failure and liver disease.

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Whether you’re training for the Ironman Triathlon or looking to do that 5K walk/run for a local cause, it’s nearly impossible to avoid some sports related pain or injury at one point in your exercise routine. Once you start experiencing pain, it becomes difficult to continue working out with the same dedication and intensity. Resting can help calm sore muscles, yet recovering for over 48 hours will allow the body to start slipping downhill from its peak state. Major injuries require rest before more permanent damage sets in that could inhibit future physical activity. Yet, for those regular bouts of muscle stiffness and pain, products such as Peaceful Mountain’s Muscle Rescue Gel and Boericke and Tafel Sports Gel do the trick to get you back to the gym and back on your game. Both products utilize natural ingredients to help sooth pain and inflammation, keeping muscles feeling great for your next workout.

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Going vegan isn’t just to save the animals anymore.  It may just save your face.  Dermatologists are uncovering more and more evidence that milk products increase the likelihood of developing acne.  Cow milk contains hormones that when ingested by the human body is converted to dihydrotestosterone (DHT).  Dihydrotestosterone is a potent form of testosterone that increases the production of oils by the sebaceous glands that then become clogged whereby bacteria enter, often resulting in acne.     

Dermatologists like Dr. Bill Danby of Dartmouth Medical School often recommend that patients may help clear up the progression of acne by eliminating milk products from their diet.  Yet, several factors contribute to this skin condition.  Many people are genetically prone to acne, followed by the two other factors whereby the reproductive organs and the adrenal glands contribute to skin eruptions by creating an overabundance of oils that can clog pores.  Dairy products act much the same way as the latter two contributors.  Eliminating dairy removes one factor that exacerbates acne, allowing a dermatologist to help patients rectify any remaining problems and eliminate acne altogether.

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Whether green and climbing or found amongst wooded ground cover, the sight and perhaps even the mere mention of poison ivy can send many people into a heart-palpitating cold sweat. It’s true. Many people are highly sensitive and can develop the bright red, intensely itchy and blistering rash by even the smallest exposure to the potent oil of the ivy plant. In fact, anywhere from 25 to 40 million people suffer from some level of allergic reaction to poison ivy.

The poison ivy plant contains a potent oil, urushiol, that binds to the skin during contact, and then is easily spread over the body. If the oil is not washed off it can be spread from head to toe, as well as to clothing and other items that one comes into contact with. These items can then transfer the poisonous oil to others or even re-expose the already suffering victim when that person comes in contact again. If not washed away, the oil can stay on garden tools and other items for up to five years.

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Are you worried about your karma? According to King Jigme Singye Wangchuck of Bhutan, a Buddhist Nation nestled in the Himalayan Mountains, the next time you light up, you might be causing more than just health problems. Smoking could wreck your karma. Bhutan is one of the first nations to enforce strict laws banning the sale and public use of tobacco. According to Slate Magazine, those caught in the act are subject to huge monetary penalties. How does approximately two months salary sound?

So maybe you’re not enlightened yet, but whether by karma or the laws of nature, your smoking habit will catch up to you. Do you wake up coughing, have shortness of breath, trouble breathing, lack of stamina? When is the last time you had a full night of sleep? Heavy smokers are often shown to wake after only a few hours of sleep due to nicotine withdrawal. Yet these symptoms are all reversible, often within only a few hours or days of quitting. And if you smoke because of stress, smoking actually causes more stress than it relieves.

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